Apple iOS 5: What does Apple have in store for iPad and iPhone?

iOS 5 could include upgraded widgets, over-the-air updates, and iCloud support for iPad and iPhone.

By
Matthew Shaer /
June 1, 2011

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Apple iOS 5, the forthcoming Apple operating system, will likely bring a range of changes to the iPhone and iPad ecosystem. Here, a user at an Apple store in Manhattan plays with an iPad 2.

Well, over at Information Week, expert prognosticator Eric Zemannotes that the competing Android Honeycomb OS already "supports powerful widgets that can be used from the home screen." Apple, on the other hand, has some widgets, but most of them are static, and unlike their counterparts in the Android ecosystem, they don't update constantly.

"Rather than shoot for the moon, we'd like to see Apple integrate widget support –– or its own variation thereof –– for a few key apps, such as email, messages, phone functions, and perhaps social networking services such as Facebook and Twitter," Zeman writes. "This would be tricky for Apple to accomplish given the current architecture of iOS, but it's not impossible."

Another possibility – which again, already exists on Android devices – is over-the-air, wireless updates. Right now, Apple issues software updates to handheld devices via iTunes. But Mark Gurman of 9 to 5 Mac thinks that Apple will work out a deal with Verizon and AT&T to push smaller updates and patches directly to handsets and iPads. (Presumably, users would have to have a Wi-Fi connection to initiate the download.)

"Just like tethering in iOS 3," Gurman writes. "Apple has the technology but cannot just unleash it everywhere. Apple and Verizon Wireless are said to have been in talks over these wireless software updates since early this year. Sources could not comment on whether or not Apple is negotiating similar deals with AT&T or international iPhone carriers."

And of course, there's the inclusion of iCloud, a cloud-computer service widely believed to be released in concert with iOS 5. Andrew Berg of Wireless Week thinks iCloud will change the way consumers use their Apple devices – from the iPhone to the iPad. (Check out our report on iCloud for a quick primer on Apple's adventures in the cloud.)

"The company's iCloud offering is widely believed to feature deep integration with Apple's iTunes platform and store," Berg writes, "allowing users to stream their music and videos from Apple's cloud, as opposed to storing it on their device. Such a service has been expected ever since Apple acquired streaming music service Lala in late 2009."